In the midst of scrupulous, Cam Newton swears to thrive in NFL

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Listen to Cam Newton. He sounds dead serious.

By Todd J. Van Emst, AP

Cam Newton could be the first player selected in the NFL draft that begins Thursday.

By Todd J. Van Emst, AP

Cam Newton could be the first player selected in the NFL draft that begins Thursday.

"I refuse to be a statistic," declares the quarterback expected to be drafted No. 1 overall by the Carolina Panthers.

"When I get to the NFL, I never want it to be, 'Cam got around the wrong people.' Or, 'Cam didn't know how to handle his money.' Or, 'Cam didn't learn the system.' I refuse to do anything that's going to be detrimental to me making the most of this opportunity."

Newton, who turns 22 on May 11, realizes that he is the lightning rod of this year's NFL Draft — which begins Thursday night at Radio City Music Hall in New York amid an NFL labor storm underscored by a lockout of players that has sparked a fierce legal battle.

After a remarkable-yet-controversial singular season at Auburn, following a banner year at Blinn (Texas) Junior College and bumpy ride at Florida, the charismatic Newton is poised to become the first Heisman Trophy winner in 60 years to top the draft after winning a national title.

Yet in a league with a distinct hit-or-miss history with quarterbacks taken high in the draft — they have led off 10 of the past 13 drafts, and 20 have been top-five picks during that span — some wonder whether Newton will join a high-profile list of recent busts.

You know the types: Ryan Leaf. Akili Smith. Joey Harrington. JaMarcus Russell.

"The worst thing you can do," says NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock, "is reach for a quarterback and miss."

Despite the projections of many experts, the Panthers haven't publicly committed to a player who will be challenged to excel in a pro-style scheme after starring in a spread offense.

Newton, 6-5, 248, won't assume anything. He visited 11 teams during a whirlwind tour, and has learned that this pre-draft anticipation is like an NFL rite of passage. Even as he sat in church recently, he felt that a spiritual message — a sermon that addressed dealing with life's challenges was titled, Why not me? —could be applied to the draft.

"Man, on one hand, I'm somewhat nervous," he says of his draft fate. "But on the other, I'm at peace. I have no control over where I go. That's for someone else to decide. I hate to have my destiny in another man's hands, but I accept that as something I've got to deal with."

On Thursday, Panthers general manager Marty Hurney told The Associated Press that he still is mulling options that presumably include trading out of the top slot. Yet it's clear that Carolina — whose new coach, Ron Rivera, was previously the San Diego Chargers defensive coordinator — needs a spark for the NFL's lowest-scoring offense.

There's little debate about Newton's talent. It gushes. His cannon arm accounted for 30 touchdown passes in 2010, and his 4.55 speed in the 40-yard dash contributed to his school-record 20 rushing TDs. He will be the NFL's fastest pass-run threat besides Michael Vick.

Says San Francisco 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh, "That's plutonium-grade raw material. I haven't seen upside like with this guy in the last 10 years."

Still, questions persist — like always, during a microscopic draft process when teams and independent analysts alike search relentlessly for flaws.

"I've known him since he was in seventh grade. Cam lights up the room. Whoever is lucky enough to draft him will certainly draft a guy who excites their fan base. I know it's a risky move because of some of the past players that you can compare him to. But as long as he's at a place where defense is going to come first, I think he's going to be very successful, and I think it would be a great pick for the Carolina Panthers."

--Boomer Esiason, CBS analyst, former NFL quarterback

"Speaking from a defensive perspective, he possesses so many different, tangible things that present problems. And things that he doesn't have as a young quarterback, you can teach. You can't teach the things that he has. A quarterback that size, his athleticism, his ability to extend plays, his toughness, his ability to play with a firestorm which he did last year is something I would be worried about. When you have a quarterback like that, he dictates coverage, he impacts your running game, your offensive line is better, it impacts the way you rush the quarterback a lot of times you have to take a great athlete out of coverage and designate him as a spy defender. Can he survive the early bumps? I think he can. I think the kid is a tough kid. He's been through a lot. Hopefully, he learned a few things along the way."

--Howie Long, Fox analyst, Hall of Fame defensive end

"I just have a ton of questions. We're talking about the No. 1 pick in the draft. I think, at his best, he'll be a Ben Roethlisberger type of player who will scramble to buy time to throw. Maybe only Michael Vick will be better in the open field as a running quarterback. But accuracy issues showed up a little bit when you watched the tape and saw him at the combine. He never called plays or made adjustments at the line of scrimmage. So there are a lot of things you have to take into consideration."

--Cris Collinsworth, NBC analyst, former NFL receiver

"He showed very good retention to me in the meetings and the material we covered. I just like the look in his eyes, the eagerness and feeling that he has a lot to prove to everybody, including himself. I think Newton impressed me the most in that regard."

--Jon Gruden, ESPN analyst, former NFL coach

"He's got everything you want. He's smart enough. He's a great athlete. It all comes down to how hard is this kid willing to work? You want to be the best quarterback in the NFL? Or do you just want to be pretty good?"

--Mike Mayock, NFL Network analyst

Newton was doused in controversy last season after an NCAA investigation concluded that his father, Cecil, engaged in a play-for-pay scheme as Newton transferred from Blinn, which he led to a national junior college championship. In 2008 Newton had a messy departure from Florida following an arrest for possession of a stolen laptop. Charges were dropped after Newton completed a pretrial diversion program.

Asked to describe how his world view has changed over the past few years, Newton says, "I've had humble beginnings. That taught me never to take anything for granted. It can be here today and gone tomorrow."

Even if teams are not concerned that Newton poses a character risk, there are myriad football questions.

Coming from a no-huddle system that typically dictated one read before running, can he read progressions from the pocket against complex NFL defenses? How long will it take? Will he establish fluid mechanics while taking snaps from center? Will he put in the work?

During an intense, two-month crash course in San Diego earlier this year with quarterbacks coach George Whitfield Jr. (who worked with Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger during his suspension last year), footwork was a key emphasis.

Whitfield says Newton is so athletic that "it's like Dwight Howard playing quarterback," but he stressed the need to appreciate mechanics.

"We spent a lot of time on rhythm and tempo," Whitfield said. "I told him, 'You may be Superman, and if you get in trouble, you can pull the rip cord and make a play. But until that point, use fundamentals to win.' "

Whitfield, a former Arena League quarterback, calls Newton an "active" learner. He says, "He was always asking why?"

That extends off the field, too. Newton enlisted Hall of Fame quarterback Warren Moon as his mentor, and has also sought the advice of former NFL stars Deion Sanders and Jerome Bettis.

"I'd be a fool not to take the things they told me to heart," Newton says. "They gave it to me raw and uncut."

During an April dinner in Atlanta, which is Newton's hometown and where Bettis lives in retirement, the ex-Steelers running back preached leadership and commitment. He told Newton work ethic is key to earning respect.

"I was impressed," Bettis says, "because he was soaking up all the information.

"I was wondering if I'd feel all the stuff about him being arrogant, but I didn't sense that at all."

Bettis said shortly after he left the restaurant Newton thanked him via text.

"When the controversy came, he never wavered in his relationship with his father," Bettis said. "And his play never wavered. When you get the adversity and criticism that he got and maintain your poise and focus, that says a lot about a quarterback."

Before the combine, Newton was widely roasted after stating to Sports Illustrated that he wanted to be an "entertainer and icon" — which fueled subsequent questions about his commitment.

Then it was a scathing assessment by Pro Football Weekly analyst Nolan Nawrocki, who contended Newton has a "fake smile" and won't win over teammates due to a "selfish" personality.

Nawrocki never met Newton.

Moon suspects that Nawrocki's report and other critiques of Newton — such as a comparison to Russell, whose poor work habits contributed to his failure with the Oakland Raiders after being selected No. 1 overall in 2007 — have racist overtones.

"I thought we were past this," said Moon, who played the first six seasons of his pro career with the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League after he finished his college career at Washington as MVP of the 1978 Rose Bowl. "It gave me the same feeling I had in 1978. It seems that there's still some racial bias out there. How do you lead two teams to two national championships if you're not a leader?

"All of a sudden he's being compared to JaMarcus Russell?"

If Newton is sensitive to backlash, he'd better get used to it in the NFL pressure cooker.

"I've always asked myself, 'Why am I getting this — the good, the bad and the ugly?' " he says. "It's like I heard in the sermon. Why not me? Why are they criticizing me on ESPN about what I can't do? Well, it could be a case where they aren't talking about me at all. So it's alright. If they're criticizing me, I must be doing something right, too."

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